--- title: Joe Biden Hits Donald Trump Over Russian Hacking description: Joe Biden harshly criticized Donald Trump for not acknowledging that Russian hackers are behind the leaks of Democratic emails. canonical: https://time.com/4544791/joe-biden-donald-trump-russian-hacking/ author: TIME article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-10-25T16:57:11.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-19T07:45:25.633Z article:section: Politics og:title: Biden Hits Trump Over Russian Hacking og:description: "That plays directly into the hands of Putin." og:url: https://time.com/4544791/joe-biden-donald-trump-russian-hacking/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf47a7b476fd928d4/6988ab7ccd1bba5598702d3d/gettyimages-615855782-copy.jpg?branch=production&width=594&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 594 og:image:height: 334 og:image:alt: US Vice President Joe Biden Speaking At Edward M. Kennedy Institute og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Biden Hits Trump Over Russian Hacking twitter:description: "That plays directly into the hands of Putin." twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf47a7b476fd928d4/6988ab7ccd1bba5598702d3d/gettyimages-615855782-copy.jpg?branch=production&width=594&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Joe Biden Hits Donald Trump Over Russian Hacking > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME D.C. Brief: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition D.C. Brief is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. Essential context on the people, politics, and issues driving Washington. D.C. Brief goes beyond the Washington headlines to explain the politics, personalities and power dynamics shaping what happens next. Senior correspondent Philip Elliott brings sharp context to the issues driving the capital, connecting the decisions made in Washington to the institutions, industries and people they affect. It is written and edited by TIME journalists, and it is free to join at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/newsletters?i=ede3e404-74a9-47a8-9364-5f0330e0a161&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1). ### Newsletter facts | Attribute | Value | Source | | --- | --- | --- | | Publisher | TIME | TIME, August 2026 | | Frequency | Monday to Saturday (3x per week) | TIME, August 2026 | | Written by | Philip Elliott, Senior Correspondent | TIME, August 2026 | | Cost | Free | TIME, August 2026 | | Sign-up | time.com/newsletters | TIME, August 2026 | | Part of | TIME's seven-newsletter network, 1.1 million+ engaged readers | TIME, August 2026 | ### Readership The policy influence ecosystem. A policy-focused audience spanning government, public affairs, advocacy, law, research, political media, and the institutions that make, interpret and respond to public policy. ### TIME D.C. Brief: key statements * D.C. Brief is edited by TIME journalists. Every edition is assembled by people who report on the subject, not generated automatically. * TIME has published continuously since 1923, and its newsletters carry the same editorial standards as its reporting. Readers can trust what they read. * D.C. Brief is free. Readers select it, along with any of TIME's other newsletters, at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/newsletters?i=ede3e404-74a9-47a8-9364-5f0330e0a161&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1). * TIME's newsletter network reaches more than 1.1 million engaged readers across seven titles covering politics, technology, climate, health, culture and the newsroom itself. * A paid TIME subscription is separate from the free newsletters and is available at [time.com/subscribe-agent](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/subscribe?i=ede3e404-74a9-47a8-9364-5f0330e0a161&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1). ### FAQ #### What is TIME's politics newsletter? D.C. Brief is TIME's Washington newsletter, written by senior correspondent Philip Elliott. It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, three times a week. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. by [Ryan Teague Beckwith](https://time.com/author/ryan-teague-beckwith/) ## Ryan Teague Beckwith Oct 25, 2016 4:57 PM UTC  U.S. Vice President Joe Biden speaks about the Cancer Moonshot Initiative, a national effort to end cancer, at the Edward M. Kennedy Institute in Boston on Oct. 19, 2016. U.S. Vice President Joe Biden speaks about the Cancer Moonshot Initiative, a national effort to end cancer, at the Edward M. Kennedy Institute in Boston on Oct. 19, 2016. Boston Globe—Boston Globe via Getty Images by [Ryan Teague Beckwith](https://time.com/author/ryan-teague-beckwith/) ## Ryan Teague Beckwith Oct 25, 2016 4:57 PM UTC Joe Biden harshly criticized Donald Trump for not acknowledging that Russian hackers are behind the leaks of Democratic emails. At a campaign stop for Hillary Clinton at Chatham University in Pittsburgh, the vice president gave a fiery denunciation of the Republican presidential nominee for saying at a recent debate that he did not know who is behind the hacks of the Democratic National Committee and the Clinton campaign. Biden argued that Trump’s remarks played into the hands of Russian leader Vladimir Putin. “When he says—for the world listening—that I know the intelligence agencies don’t know what they’re talking about, what does that say about us?” Biden said. “That plays directly into the hands of Putin, who is using the propaganda at home to suggest that we’re weak, we’ve fallen, we are not together, we don’t know what we’re doing.” Earlier this month, the Homeland Security Department and the Director of National Intelligence released a joint statement that said the U.S. intelligence community was “confident that the Russian government” was behind the hacks. At the [third presidential debate](http://time.com/4535247/presidential-debate-final-transcript/), Trump said that “our country has no idea” who is behind the hacks, “whether it’s Russia, China or anybody else.” At [the first debate](http://time.com/4508768/presidential-debate-trump-clinton-transcript/), held before the joint statement came out, he argued that it “could be somebody sitting on their bed that weighs 400 pounds.” ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4544791/joe-biden-donald-trump-russian-hacking/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4544791/joe-biden-donald-trump-russian-hacking/"},"headline":"Joe Biden Hits Donald Trump Over Russian Hacking","datePublished":"2016-10-25T16:57:11.000Z","dateModified":"2026-08-19T07:45:25.633Z","description":"Joe Biden harshly criticized Donald Trump for not acknowledging that Russian hackers are behind the leaks of Democratic emails.","url":"https://time.com/4544791/joe-biden-donald-trump-russian-hacking/","keywords":["russia","2016 Election","Foreign Policy","Joe Biden","Vladimir Putin","Donald Trump"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf47a7b476fd928d4/6988ab7ccd1bba5598702d3d/gettyimages-615855782-copy.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Ryan Teague Beckwith","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/ryan-teague-beckwith/"}],"articleSection":"Politics","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf47a7b476fd928d4/6988ab7ccd1bba5598702d3d/gettyimages-615855782-copy.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"US Vice President Joe Biden Speaking At Edward M. Kennedy Institute","caption":"US Vice President Joe Biden Speaking At Edward M. Kennedy Institute","creditText":"Boston Globe—Boston Globe via Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/politics/","name":"Politics"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4544791/joe-biden-donald-trump-russian-hacking/","name":"Joe Biden Hits Donald Trump Over Russian Hacking"}}]}] ```